I am a Canadian who was born to a Druze family in Syria ( in what is now known a Mount Druze/Suwayda province ) and am of the view that the planned Nakba exhibit by the Canadian Human Rights Museum is ill conceived, lacks balance, and ignores the experiences of Druze in the 1948 war. The Druze in the 1948 war in the Holyland would have been slaughtered by Palestinian Arabs and surrounding Arab states, in their efforts to destroy the nascent state of Israel. I ask why it is it that the Human Rights Museum has decided to tell the stories of Palestinian Canadians in the 1948 war, and not that of the Druze Canadians or Jewish Canadians in that same war and in the surrounding region?
I belong to a family that descended from Mount Lebanon, and come from a minority community that has always understood what it means to survive amid larger and hostile powers, shifting borders, and constant uncertainty. That background strongly shapes how I view the establishment in 1948 of the state of Israel.
I still remember how I grew up in a country (Syria) that was ruled by the Ba’ath Party, an Arab national-socialist and fascist party that took the so-called 'Palestinian' flag as its flag, adopting an ideology of antisemitism. It’s goal was to eliminate the nascent State of Israel, and exterminate the Jews, and or exile them from their motherland. I cannot forget how I was indoctrinated by my state schooling to have a deep hate towards the State of Israel, and the Jewish people. In school, we were even forced to spread our arms out in the same manner as a the Nazi salute, and chant "our commitment is to fight Imperialism and Zionism” and to crush the “Jewish gangs.”
As I was sitting with my maternal grandpa one day, I learned from him that there were Druze living in the land of Israel.In Syria, I had always been told that Druze in Israel were under 'occupation' and were being persecuted by the Jews. My grandpa told me in his calm and deep voice: "Listen son, I'm going to tell you something but do not to talk about with others. When I was 18 I went to the Holy Land in 1948 to fight against Israel.We were recruited by what was called the 'Liberation Army', and I was told that our Druze brothers and sisters were being persecuted by Jews.” My grandpa told me he had arrived wanting to help save his brethren, but when he arrived he we found out that Druze in the nascent state of Israel were fighting alongside the Jews together against Palestinian Arabs and Arabs from surrounding states who were attacking them.My grandp said “. What you've been told is not the reality, our people , the Druze were suffering persecution by Palestinian Arabs in the Galilee, and when Israel was established, the Druze became free and protected"
My grandpa was among the Druze men who came back to Mount Druze, as he was married and was expecting his first child. However, many of the Druze fighters from Syria remained in the State of Israel, and joined the Druze community there. Many Israeli Druze families today are originally from Mount Druze.
The Nakba exhibit is privileging the experiences of Palestinian Canadians over the experiences of Druze Canadians , like myself, who have historically been persecuted by Palestinian Arabs.
The Druze citizens of Israel serve in the army, participate in public life, and practice their own religion and culture freely. In the Middle East where minorities are often persecuted, marginalized, or erased, this reality matters deeply. In 1947, the UN partition plan called for an Arab and Jewish state, but Palestinian Arabs wanted to eliminate the Jews and their Druze allies more than they wanted their own state. For the Canadian Museum of Human Rights to tell their stories without this needed historical context is simply unjust.
Israel’s story, that of a resilient small nation, surrounded by hostile forces seeking its destruction rather than coexistence resonates strongly with the Druze experience. As Druze, we always had to leave our farms and fight and kill or get killed, not because we wanted to do that, but simply because the other option was being exterminated by neighbors who don’t believe in terms like diversity, inclusion or cultural and religious differences. Over the years, I have come to realize that experiences of the Druze and the Jewish people are very similar.
After the fall of the Assad regime in Syria on December 8th 2024, Druze people and other non-Muslim ethnic and religious minorities felt very insecure and endangered, as radical Islamist powers took over Damascus. The Druze refused to give up their arms until the new de facto in Damascus promised to form a secular and inclusive constitution guaranteeing equal rights for all, including minorities. However, the new authorities that were an off-shot of Al-Qaida (HTS/Nusra Front) completely refused, and instead decided to conduct a massive attack on Mount Druze on July 13, 2025. Tens of thousands of heavily armed government troops, and armed Syrian tribal groups associated with the de facto government in Damascus attacked Suwayda. The started looting, burning houses, and killing everyone including elderly women and children. The beheaded people, raped women including minors and girls under 10. It was something very similar to what happened on October 7, 2023 in southern Israel by Hammas terrorists.
The Arab-speaking neighboring countries, and the international community remained silent.
The only country that stood for us was the State of Israel. After the Druze in Suwayda were desperately begging for assistance, the only one that responded was the Israel. The Israeli Air Force conducted airstrikes on government and military building in Damascus, and directly targeted the HTS/Nusra Muslim terrorists inside Mount Druze, which already had been occupying third of the capital city of Suwayda. Under the heavy attacks of the Israeli Air Forces the terrorists were forced to withdraw. Israel has actually saved one of thr most ancient minorities in the Levant from an ultimate genocide, and without its intervention the Druze in Suwayda would have been wiped out. This story needs to be told in the Canadian Museum of Human Rights- and it should be told concurrently to any Nakba exhibit.
Carlos Matni immigrated to Canada nine years ago and has studied Anthropology at the University of Winnipeg. He lives in Dauphin Manitoba.
